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Strengths Pittsnogle is the absolute prototype of a face up power forward, having the potential to cause major mismatch problems in the NBA with his excellent three-point shooting ability.

When watching him play, it appears that he has quite a bit more experience playing away from the basket than in the post, despite his 6-10 size. His jump shot is not picture perfect, he does fade away on his three-point shot almost every time, however, that is not really a major concern because he can get his jump shot off under intense pressure with surprising ease and incredible accuracy. Pittsnogle has a very quick release, and his jumper is straight as an arrow and very fluid which allows him to shoot a very good percentage from the three-point line. He has great rotation on his shot and a very soft touch, and shows absolutely no hesitation shooting the ball from anywhere on the floor.

Hes also a terrific free throw shooter at just under 86%, although he only gets to the charity stripe about three times a game.

In terms of offensive moves outside of shooting he is some what limited, but the few moves he does have in the paint he uses with perfection. With his back to the basket in the post, one of the rare times he posts up he will either shoot a soft spinning fade-away jump shot, or a good-looking short jump-hook.

Where he plays on the basketball court on offense is a matter of where he is comfortable, and where he is comfortable is on the perimeter, as he is almost strictly perimeter oriented. Pittsnogles comfort level shooting three-point shots is like that of a shooting guard. What he does exceptionally well in terms of offensive plays is run the pick and roll, with his size to get his shot off against anyone and ability to shoot a great percentage from the three-point line, he is great coming off the high screen roll. Pittsnogle also likes to run fades in transition or just simply pop out and shoot benefiting off of his teammates penetration. His off the ball movement is excellent and despite the fact that everyone in the country knows he wants to shoot the three all day long and tries to gear the defense to stop it, he still got off nearly 7 attempts a game while shooting 40% from behind the arc.

If his shot isnt there, Pittsnogle has shown the ability to find the open man with his excellent court vision and passing skills.

Despite his lack of outstanding athletic ability, he does run the court moderately well for a post player when motivated. When he does that he can get a lot of open looks at the three-point line, and when he gets an open shot he will knock it down more often than not. Its obvious that he is at his best when he puts the effort in and runs the court, because during that time he will actually go to the basket and attack.

Mental toughness is another one of his other strengths as a prospect, he is an emotionally and mentally tough kid. Despite his lack of a physical game, he will put his body on the line in key situations, take hard charges, and he has been the emotional leader of the West Virginia team. He has stepped up in many big games over the years and provided emotional energy and intensity even under stressful situations.

Pittsnogle has greatly improved his game this year, taking it to another level after getting in much better shape over the summer and has legitimately become one of college basketballs elite players.

WeaknessesThe biggest negative about Pittsnogles game is that he is almost certainly going to be a defensive liability in the pros. He is extremely slow, has a very poor wingspan, is not very physical, fairly soft, and does not play any type of on the ball defense moving his feet or hustling. Instead, his defense is usually taking a charge or flopping in the post if he goes up against a great post player. He will definitely have to pick up his defensive intensity because he will not get by long playing poor defense in the NBA. In college he played a lot of zone defense, so he was not always taken advantage off on this end.

Another area of his game he must improve is his rebounding ability. He does not really box out; the rebounds he does get will either come right to him or will be long off the rim. The main reason why he is not an effective rebounder beyond his obvious lack of athleticism, non-existent vertical leap and extremely sort arms is his inability to get physical in the post. If he would be willing to put in a little more effort, he might be able to improve his rebounding skills. Pittsnogle gets boxed out by opponents easily, and usually does not put up a good fight on the glass.

On offense, his lack of a true post game and his love affair with the perimeter could force some teams to shy away from him. His short hook shot is somewhat effective at the college level, but outside of that he does not have any type of back to the basket game. He is simply not a physical post player, so his offensive game is limited to outside jump shooting and screen and rolls to get mismatches on the perimeter. If his jumper isnt falling, hes basically useless to an NBA team because of his shortcomings in every other part of his game.

Athletically, he is not outstanding by any means, being that he does not really jump that high and is very slow running the court. He is also not a chiseled athlete by any means. In terms of strength he has improved that part of his game over the years, but still isnt physical enough to bang down low and get easy baskets.

For a player that plays on the perimeter away from the basket so often, he is a pretty poor ball-handler. At times he can handle the ball for one or two dribbles, but hes not very effective in terms of being a slashing threat going to the basket. He does not really create shots off of the dribble that often, mostly being a stand-still shooter.

CompetitionPlaying in the Big East, Pittsnogle has gone up against some high quality basketball teams as well as quality big men. However he has had struggles against the likes of UCLA, LSU and UCONN during his senior season. The most likely reason for this is because teams like LSU can put a long and quick defensive oriented PF in Tyrus Thomas on Pittsnogle and limit his ability to get open from the outside. The is one area where Pittsnogles shooting could be stopped, is if he is matched up against long and athletic PFs that are skilled defending away from the basket.

Overall, though, Pittsnogle has really come into his own this year as a senior. He was first recognized in last years NCAA tournament, and this year he has legitimized his performance and proved that he is a very dangerous offensive basketball player.

OutlookWith Pittsnogles outstanding shooting ability beyond the three-point line, he has the potential to provide major mismatch problems for NBA big men off the bench. With his size and ability to hit open jump shots, he could be the ultimate role player for a NBA team already stacked with talent. He is not a superstar, and will not be a player that that will carry a team, but if put in the right situation he could have great success.

His defensive liability is a major concern, but with the ability to draw talented big men away from the basket, opening up the game and providing lanes to get to the basket justifies putting him on the court. He will most likely be a 2nd round pick, but it would not be surprising at all if he has a solid NBA career.

FactsFirst Team All Big East. One of 10 finalists for the Wooden award. Member of the 2003 US Junior National Team.

Measured officialy at 6-10 1/4 with a 6-10 1/2 wingspan at the Chicago pre-draft camp last year.

Though he scored well throughout the game against Texas, Kevin Pittsnogle proved why his upside is limited as an NBA power forward. 15 of his 19 points came off of three point baskets, but he was abused defensively by LaMarcus Aldridge and only managed to grab 3 rebounds against the Texas front line. Pittsnogle used his nice shooting stroke throughout the entire game, and helped West Virginia cut into the double digit lead belonging to Texas in the first half. In the second half, he continued to keep the game close with his shooting, and even made a game-tying shot with 5 seconds left. The shot was quickly forgotten however, as Kenton Paulino drained a three to win as time expired.

Most of Pittsnogles shortcomings on the pro level will result from the fact that he is a big guy who excels at nothing but shooting threes. It was quite clear how lacking Kevin will be athletically in the NBA, as LaMarcus Aldridge constantly beat him badly up and down the court. Pittsnogle has a limited game inside at the college level, which will likely just get worse in the NBA, and isnt helped by his lack of explosiveness. His physical shortcomings also hurt him on the glass, as he lacks the length to be a factor and was constantly out jumped and out hustled all night long against Texas. Pittsnogle does know how to play to his strengths, however, and does have a shot at contributing in the NBA someday in a Matt Bonner type role.

After a somewhat weak start to his senior season (9 points against Texas, 8 points against LSU, both losses), Kevin Pittsnogle and the West Virginia Mountaineers appear to be back on track and ready to capitalize on much of the preseason hype that followed him and his team into the season.

Averaging over 20 points a game on a scorching 47% from behind the arc on the season, Pittsnogle is continuing to make it well known to all the type of role he projects to play in the NBA. His ability to pull big men away from the basket and create space for his teammates with his phenomenal outside stroke puts him in a rare class of players in this draft. He was ice cold throughout much of the Chicago pre-draft camp after being unconscious in the NCAA tournament last March, but has regained his stroke and then some hitting 2 and a half shots a game from behind the arc this year. He has done a slightly better job this year at scoring from inside the arc as well, mainly with a nice jump-hook or the mid-range jumper, but considering his limited physical attributes its his 3-point shot that will almost certainly be his calling card as a pro.

Despite being listed at 6-11 by West Virginia, Pittsnogle measured in an inch shorter at the pre-draft camp in Chicago at 6-10 in shoes with a very pedestrian 6-10 ½ wingspan. To compound that, he is a below average athlete with very poor foot-speed and almost no leaping ability whatsoever to speak of. The name Matt Bonner (Toronto Raptors) is often floated around in discussions around him as the Red Rocket possesses similar size, length, shooting ability and skin color, but we must remember that Bonner is a superior rebounder who is known as a coaches favorite as he possesses the type of intangibles that Pittsnogle sorely lacks in hustle, work ethic, conditioning and toughness. West Virginia is one of the worst rebounding teams in all of college basketball, and their center is often a big part of that.

Another trip to the pre-draft camp is likely in the cards for Pittsnogle. This time around he will have to at least get a passing grade in terms of taking care of the glass and his defensive matchups at the power forward position, while also knocking down his outside shot. Coming in in better shape and with more fire and intensity should help him out a great deal.

Up until mid-February, Kevin Pittsnogle had no business being on this list. However, as West Virginia's fortunes have risen, Pittsnogle has emerged as West Virgnia's top scoring threat. After a promising freshman campaign, Pittsnogle's minutes had slowly dwindled, as he refused to give the Mountaineers the physical presence they needed in the paint. However, beginning with West Virginia's upset win over Pittsburgh, Pittsnogle began to light up the twine in a way that forced John Beilein to leave him on the floor. Up until his stinker in the conference championship game against Syracuse, he had reached double digits in every game since. While it's hard to see Pittsnogle ever gaining the mentality it takes to truly succeed as a big man in the NBA, 6'11 big men that shoot like Kevin Pittsnogle are in short supply. If he can improve his game inside the arc, he has to get a look in 2006.